Page 56 of Getting the Grinder
Leo: Feels more like fifty.
“All right, let’s get back to it,” the trivia host says. “Our next category is Westerns. Western movies, that is.”
“Fuck,” Dex mutters.
Mara: I have to put my phone away, I’m not allowed to have it out during the game. Text later?
Leo: Sure. Let me know when you’re back at Dex’s.
Mara: I will.
“In the movie Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, what does Harvey Logan challenge Butch Cassidy to?”
From the looks on their faces, I know none of my friends know the answer to this. I don’t either.
“A duel?” Suki whispers. “That’s all I can think of.”
“Makes sense,” Lainey says.
She writes it down.
“Hey, was that Leo you were texting?” Lainey asks.
“Yes.”
“Did he say who’s winning the game?”
“They’re down, it’s 1–0.”
“Fucking Winnipeg,” she says.
“I can’t believe he’s allowed to text you during a game,” Dex says.
“He’s not playing tonight. He’s injured.”
Suki gives me a concerned look. “What happened?”
“He doesn’t know for sure yet. He has to get tests done when they get back. Something to do with his knee.”
“That’s terrible. For him and the team.”
I don’t tell her what Leo said—that he’s almost certainly going to be out for a while. It would get back to Carter.
I feel protective of Leo already. Even though there are lots of questions I don’t know the answers to, I know I’ll never share his secrets with anyone. Whether we stay lovers or just end up as friends, I never want to be his enemy again.
Chapter Nineteen
Leo
* * *
It’s been the worst week I’ve had in a long time. I’m still traveling with my team, but I’m not part of it.
I go to meetings and meals with my teammates, but I’m on the outside. They’re the ones bleeding and fighting for the wins. I’m just a spectator.
Melina examined my knee a few days ago and confirmed it’s a torn meniscus. We both knew already, but it still sucked to hear her say it. I’m wearing a knee brace and it’s feeling a lot better just from not playing hockey. I don’t know if that means anything or not, though.
“How’s the knee?”
